Defensive Analysis: Penn State

[Editor's note: bumped for obvious reasons. I was just going to say the same stuff about the long handoffs anyway in UFR.]

I just finished breaking down the first half plus the first series of the second half from the Penn State game.  Overall, the defense was generally solid, but there were a handful of major gaffes.  When you gaffe on defense, the other team gashes you, usually for six.  This happened Saturday. 

What compounded these problems was the ineffectiveness of the offense, which I believe can be primarily explained by two words: David Molk.  The team practiced all week with Molk at center and then for him to get injured after 5 plays and out for the rest of the first half really hurt the execution.  The other major offensive problem was catching a football.

When you wear gloves.

When you get paid to do it. [ed.: in scholarships, folks!]

To quote Brian: "Blearrrggghhhh!"

After Penn State's 2nd offensive series (on which they kicked a FG to go up 10-7), the offense had 4 series to either tie the game or take the lead.  The results? Punt, punt, pick, safety.  How did the defense follow up these? Forced punt, forced punt, forced punt, and then the 1-play drive for the TD to make it 19-7.  In the first half, the D gave the O plenty of opportunities.  The O gave the D no margin for error.

Okay, on to the meat.

ANALYSIS BULLETS:

• In the 36 snaps (some called back due to penalty), we set our front to the field 30 times, or 83.33% of the time.  I'm guessing we had a huge tendency on them.
• Out of the 36 calls, 25 were no blitz (69.44%), 10 were man pressures (27.78%), and 1 was a zone blitz (2.78%). 
• While only 1 call was a pure zone blitz (i.e., we blitzed LBs and played all zone behind it, including dropping the quick into an underneath zone), we did drop the nose and tackle into the shallow underneath area in order to a) take away shallow cross, b) take away check down throws to the RBs, and c) spy the QB.  We did this 3 times.
• We played some form of man coverage on 21 of the 36 calls I broke down (58.33%), and only 3 of those were no safety help.  However, two of those used the nose/tackle drops.
• Two Penn State TDs were the exact same play out of the exact same formation to the exact same WR matched up against the exact same defender.  Angry-Michigan-Stevie-Brown-Hating-God.
• Shocking as it is, our safety play was poor.  We didn't tackle well, we didn't cover well, we weren't physical.  Woolfolk was decent in coverage as a safety, but we had to play him at corner; now even more so with Cissoko's departure.  Kovacs was a good run defender as the Free Safety (which is really our hybrid safety/LB player), but we moved him to Strong Safety.
• The long TD to the TE was Kovacs responsibility.  We were in Cover 2.  The completion wasn't on him, but the fact that it turned into a TD was on him.  There were three breakdowns on the play.  First, Brandon Herron lines up too far outside the TE, allowing him a free release.  There's no reason for him to be out that far given there's Stevie Brown apexed b/w the slot and the TE, plus a hard corner in cover 2.  Second, Obi doesn't collision the TE, mostly b/c of his unmolested release, but Obi still has to at least get his hands on the TE and widen him toward the half safety.  Third, and most importantly, Kovacs has the deep half of the field.  The two WRs both ran hitches, which should have refocused Kovac's eyes inside to #3.  He didn't get depth, and then looked less than speedy attempting to chase down the TE.

• D-line is keeping us from being the worst Michigan defense of all time.  We have 3 good players and The Beast.  However, it is possible that The Beast was responsible for Royster's long run and the end around for a 1st down on 3rd and 2.
• LB play is average.  The technique is solid now, but recognition just isn't there sometimes, and when ILB recognition isn't there, the defense starts to bleed yards.  This is hard to tell, but you just don't see LBs making plays.  When you think about the great defenses, what do they all have in common? They were all strong up the middle: great DTs, ILBs, and safeties.
• The DL excellence and improved LB technique
• Corner play was good the last two real games, but naturally once the good teams know that, they attack elsewhere.  (I think Warren played hurt after that punt return fiasco and couldn't play with the same effectiveness, hence, the TD allowed late in the game.)
• Regardless of position, opposing receivers are never re-routed unless we are in their face.  This is not how good pass defenses play coverage.  All receivers running downfield routes must be collisioned in every coverage.
• Coach Robinson is mixing up coverages nicely, in terms of making them look identical.  Now, whether or not they were effective is a different matter, but there had to be many occurances of Daryl Clark reading the coverage and being incorrect.
• The maddening quick screens to the WRs were the result of poor execution in some of the coverage looks mentioned above.  Allow me to demonstrate:

Okay, the corner's 10 yards off.  What's the coverage?  Man?


You're correct.  However, we were playing a "slice" technique, which is used in bracket coverage.  Williams and Warren were bracketing #1, and Williams was supposed to undercut him.  Yes, it'd still be a completion, but there's no way they should get 8 yards.  If you go back and watch the film, you'll notice that after their third time having success with this, it came on our sideline and you can see GERG in Williams's grill after the play, reprimanding him.

We also used this:

Okay, what's the coverage? Man?


Nope, it's cover 2.  Notice how the defense's alignment is almost identical.  The only differences are the alignments of Stevie, who has to apex #2 and EMLOS b/c there's 2 WR's to his side instead of 1, and Kovacs, who is now a deep half player instead of a center fielder.  However, on the boundary side, we are playing what is called "thumbs" or sometimes "invert" b/c the safety is down in the box (hence the hybrid OLB/safety nature of our free safety) and the corner is deep.

In this coverage, it is also Williams's responsibility to make the quick WR screen a small gain, as opposed to, say...oh...8 yards.

Okay, that was fun.  Now allow me to opinionate:

OPINION BULLETS:

• Watch the 2nd half kickoff and you'll see why Brandon Smith is a LB instead of a safety.
• And we really, really, really need safeties.  And linebackers...but mostly inside linebackers.  We're pretty set at OLB, in my opinion.
• Going forward, expect our safeties to be targeted every game.  We must become competent or we will give up 30+ every game the rest of this season.  Yes, even Illinois.
• We need to switch Kovacs and Williams.  Kovacs doesn't make mental errors, but he simply doesn't have the skill set to play a deep zone.  Whoever suggested he'll be a Sam next year, I was on the same frequency.
• For those of you seriously concerned about the immediate future of this team, I don't think it's as bad as Saturday suggested.  At the time, I didn't think it was as good as ND suggested.  (Although, to be fair, playing the Irish will always make you think you're better than you actually are.  Here's a little prayer for Weis being there for many years.)  Right now we're on the uphill part of the roller coaster, which is dull for those who like to have fun and a relief for those who like to be comfortable.  When you're on the roller coaster, though, if you want to have the fun you have to first endure the dull.  Remember, as Beilein said, the 2nd year is a roller coaster.  Space Shuttle rides come years later.
• Defensive recruiting is this program's #1 priority.  I know, I know.  Duh.
• As I stated in a board post, I don't like going all-out blitz with man coverage on 3rd and long.  The dagger TD against Stevie Brown was a double safety, Mike LB blitz with cover 0 behind it on 3rd and 9 from the 11.  In that situation, what is to be gained by a sack that wouldn't also be gained by a 7-yard completion?  Best case scenario with that call (assuming no turnover created) is a 10 yard loss, making it a 38-yard FG attempt.  Easily makeable.  I would play cover 2 , keep the ball in front of us, give up the FG, and keep us in the game.
• I believe Rodriguez will ultimately be successful here, if he is shown the same patience by the administration that Amaker was.  That type of patience, however, will not happen with the fan base.